meaning of skills and attributes (was re: Races)
To prevent thread hijacking, I decided to start my own thread in response to a request by a poster in the Races thread to give my ideas about the meaning of skill ranks and attribute scores.
While the skill ranks have been in my mind for a while, I have only recently devised what the attribute scores mean. The basic format is the score followed by a short description (one or two words) and some examples.
ATTRIBUTES
0 to 1: almost negligible. Only because the creature in question possesses the rudiments of a mind and body is the score even recorded. Examples: the Bearing, Perception, and Wits of rocks and plants; the Strength and Vitality of mice and insects.
2 to 3: below human. Examples: most animals' Wits score.
4 to 5: below average. Examples: the Bearing of Orcs; the Nimbleness of a clumsy Man; the Strength of Hobbits; the Vitality of sickly Men; the Wits of Wild Men.
6 to 7: barely noticeable. Examples: the Bearing of typical Dwarves, Fallohide Hobbits, and Men; the Nimbleness of Men of the West; the Perception of typical Dwarves and Men; Strength and Vitality of Elves and average Men; the Wits of Sindar and Silvan Elves, Hobbits, and Middle Men.
8 to 9: gifted. Examples: the Bearing of the Dunedain; the Nimbleness of Elves and warriors amongst Dwarves and Men; the Perception of Hobbits, Elves, and observant Men and Dwarves; the Strength and Vitality of Dwarves, Wild Men, Sindar, Silvan Elves, and Hobbits; the Wits of Noldor, craftsmen, and the nobility amongst Dwarves, Hobbits, and Men.
10 to 11: remarkable. Examples: the Bearing of the Noldor and mighty Dwarven and Mannish lords; the Nimbleness of Rangers, burglars, Riders of Rohan, and Elven warriors; the Perception of Rangers and others who spend a lot of time in the wild; the Strength of a brawny man or warrior; the Vitality of outdoorsmen and staunch warriors; the Wits of most loremasters.
12 to 13: exceptional. Examples: the Bearing of royal Dwarves and Men and lords of the Eldar; the Nimbleness of great Elven warriors; the Perception of Elven scouts; the Strength and Vitality of powerful warriors; the Wits of great loremasters and magicians.
14 to 15: greatest amongst those living in Middle-Earth. Examples: the Bearing of the greatest kings of Men; the Nimbleness of elite Elven archers; the Perception and Wits of the Wise; the Strength and Vitality of the greatest warriors of Middle-Earth.
16+: superhuman. Examples: the Bearing and Wits of Wizards; the Strength and Vitality of balrogs.
SKILL RANKS
0 ranks: untrained. Examples: Merry and Pippin with combat skills at the beginning of FotR
1 - 3 ranks: novice. Examples: Bilbo's Legerdemain and Stealth. He's aided more by his agility and perceptiveness than training or experience
4 - 6 ranks: seasoned. Examples: typical Gondorian soldier's Armed Combat skill
7 - 9 ranks: expert. Examples: Boromir's Siegecraft, Survival skill of a Ranger of the North
10 - 11 ranks: master. Examples: Rohirrim Ride skill, Aragorn's Track skill
12+ ranks: most exalted amongst the Free Peoples. Examples: Legolas with Ranged Combat: Bows, Elrond's Healing, Fëanor's and Telchar's Smithcraft
Men are weak.
Elrond for President!
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